


A Foot in Both Worlds

by Stricklanderkin (bl00dw1tch)



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Canon-Typical Violence, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, and strong enough, basically stricklers a stupid basard but its ok, nomura is smart enough for the both of them, send help, stricklers in for hell, trollhunter!strickler au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-25
Updated: 2019-01-25
Packaged: 2019-10-16 02:47:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17541203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bl00dw1tch/pseuds/Stricklanderkin
Summary: ((A Trollhunter Strickler AU based on my own personally logic about how it'd go down))“For the glory of… Merlin--”Nomura snickered, and his eyes snapped open, “Shut up.”She zipped her lips, trying to suppress a smug smile.Strickler pursed his lips in frustration, glaring at her as he spoke more quickly, “For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!”





	A Foot in Both Worlds

The blue light refracting through Strickler’s kitchen was responded to with an uncharacteristic shriek of confusion and terror--as was the suit of armor adorning his figure only moments later. 

 

He fell to the ground and scrambled backwards into the wall with an unpleasant chorus of metallic clattering. He flailed his arms as if it would somehow shake the mystical metal off of him, but to no avail. As the realization set in, breathing became a laborious task.

 

The late Trollhunter, Kanjigar, had been killed only just that morning. Bular was trapped under the bridge and unable to traverse the canal in search of the amulet, so Strickler was called in to retrieve it. It was a simple task that went off without a hitch at first, but his car ride home was filled with ominous whisperings of his true name, voices calling to him from some unknown beyond. It was extremely unsettling, so he chose to leave it home until he got out of work, intending on studying it in depth later that night. 

 

Fate would leave him wanting for that however, because when he came home and first pulled it out for the cursory once-over look, he made the mistake of reading it’s inscription out loud.

 

Thus, leading him to his current state; Having a panic attack of colossal proportions on his kitchen floor. 

 

“This is… Oh my god this is  _ bad _ ,” He said to himself with a wheeze. Now he was starting to regain his senses, thankfully--He needed to get this armor off before Nomura came by to see the Amulet, and he couldn’t very well figure out  _ how  _ to remove it while floundering around like a fool. He used the wall as a brace to pull himself up, his other gloved hand working to find some crack beneath the amulet by which to tear it off. 

 

He tried his best, grunting in effort, but the amulet would not budge. He gave a strained growled of frustration, jumping over to the drawers that held his cooking utensils. While fumbling to get a good grip on the handle of a steak fork, his phone buzzed on the counter. He flipped it over and unlocked it.

 

**6:53** _ Nomura _ ** > ** On my way 

 

“Oh for the love of--” He choked out, slamming the electronic device down before practically stabbing the Amulet with the barbeque tool, as if an act of violence would somehow frighten the object off of him--Which led to a scream not of his own creation to startle him into dropping the tool.

 

“Master Walter, do  _ not _ damage that amulet! I know you do not yet understand it’s significance, but that is an object of  _ incredible _ poWER--” The new voice spoke before the changeling was forcefully spun around to face it’s source. The three pairs of eyes and traffic cone orange nose were far too close for comfort, so Strickler did what anyone would do; He screamed. 

 

Again.

 

The foreign troll yelled in surprise for a moment, taking his hands off of the seemingly human creature and backing up, “Master Walter, I apologize if I startled you! Please be calm, I promise that you are perfectly s--SAFE!! SAFE! YOU ARE SAFE, WE WILL NOT HARM YOU, PLEASE PUT THAT AWAY!” The troll panicked when the Sword of Daylight itself was thrusted towards him, it’s wielder taking the space between them now by slipping backwards into his living room.

 

“Who are you?!  _ How did you find me _ ?! Who is--oh  _ god!” _ Strickler demanded, trailing off into a higher octave as he finally saw his intruder’s much larger companion--and troll he knew of from books and stories. The infamous Aaarrrgghhaumont, the Traitor. He was far more intimidating in person, but… Not in the terrifying way Strickler had always imagined, at least? 

 

The six eyed troll spoke again with a softer voice, hands held up in a surrendering gesture, “My name... Is Blinky. This here is Aaarrrgghh. We found you by following the call of the amulet!”

 

“Spying.” The krubera interjected disapprovingly. 

 

Blinky gave him a look, “Fine, yes, we were  _ spying.  _ Have no fear, however! We are not in the habit of it, but as the first human Trollhunter, we felt it necessary to watch you and... Get to know you!”

 

“So to speak.”

 

“So to speak, yes! So that we could best plan how to introduce ourselves without frightening you,” He said with a delighted clap before deflating, “I again apologize for our sudden appearance, it was never my intention to startle you, but… You seem much calmer now at the very least?” He finished hopefully. 

 

Strickler’s arms had begun to hurt, so he let tip of the blade drop onto the ground, “F… First human Trollhunter?” He asked in confusion before it hit him. 

 

_ They don’t know he’s a changeling. _

 

“Ah, yes! The  _ very  _ first! A very prestigious position to be in!”

 

“Pris-tea-gee-oss?”

 

“Means distinguished and respected, and if you’re an optimist, Master Walter, it could even mean rather  _ lucky _ ! Holding such a sacred place in such a mysterious world compared to your own could prove enlightening for you!” Blinky threw his top pair of arms in the air in an attempt to brighten the mood, but frowned when the ‘human’s’ expression withered in a way that showed he did not, in fact, think of this as a  _ lucky  _ situation.

 

Before either of them could speak again, Strickler’s phone vibrated again on the kitchen counter. He let go of his sword in favor of lunging for it, opening it up as the blood drained from his face.

 

**7:00** _ Nomura  _ **> ** I’m here

 

Strickler dropped it and looked the shorter of the two trolls in the eyes with urgency, “Tell me how to get the armor off, NOW.” 

 

Blinky blinked in a vertical wave with his many eyes, “O-oh, well, it responds to your emotional state. If you need it removed, composing yourself would be the best course of action,” He spoke, eyes widening when the man took a deep breath and nodded before rushing over and behind them, pushing them into the living room and towards the stairs. 

 

He stopped at the foot of them, pointing at the pair sternly, “Go upstairs, and  _ stay  _ there.”

 

He swivels around just as the doorbell rings. Strickler grits his teeth before forcing himself to relax, taking a deep, slow breath and holding it with shut eyes, to see if dropping his heart rate would count as ‘composing himself’. 

 

The ring of the doorbell again, followed by a fist banging on the wood, made his eyes snap open just as the cursed armor finally faded away. The amulet fell to the floor with a hollow  _ clack.  _ He exhaled exaggeratedly and picked it back up with a relieved smile before rushing to the door. 

 

Outside he was greeted by an irritated looking museum curator, “Took you long enough.”

 

He grinned tensely at her, “Sorry, I was a bit, erm,” He faltered, glancing over his shoulder to make sure the trollish visitors had gone upstairs--they had indeed, “I was busy with something.” He said quietly, stepping aside to let her in.

 

She rose an eyebrow at him, “Oooookay...” She stepped in carefully to let him close the door, “Do I even want to ask?”

 

Strickler paused as he re- locked the door, “Depends.”

 

“On what?”

 

“If you can keep a secret.” 

 

She crossed her arms with an unamused look, “I think I can manage that.”

 

He rolled his eyes before walking towards her and giving her a hug that she was definitely not expecting. His voice dropped to a whisper, “Something happened with the Amulet. There’s two trolls  _ in my house _ , upstairs, and they do not know I’m a changeling.” 

 

She took a moment before hugging back with an equally hushed reply, “Let’s keep it that way, then, by not acting  _ weird _ . Let go of me, we don’t need to be  _ this  _ close to whisper.” 

 

Strickler squeezed her ribcage tighter out of spite before letting go. She coughed in pain and shoved him off before rubbing her back and beginning the act, “ _ So,  _ you said you found something you wanted to show me? From down in the  _ canal _ ?”  

 

The man sighed, walking to the living room with her in tow, “Yes. It was this. It’s…” He struggled for a moment to think of what to say, holding the Amulet up to her while looking up at the stairs, “It’s a pretty incredible device. Something… Happened right before you got here, actually. Because of it.” He began warily, sitting on the couch so that Nomura’s back would be to the staircase. 

 

She sat down and crossed her legs, arms propped up on the backing and armrest, cheek resting on her fist, “ _ What _ kind of thing  _ happened _ ?” she exaggerated dramatically, snorting when he glared at her for it, “Wait wait wait, no, let me  _ guess,”  _ she smirked, leaning forward.

 

“I bet you said some stupid battle call and this little thing just started  _ glowing  _ like a  _ star  _ and all of a sudden, woosh!!! You’re in some magical suit of armor and you find out it’s your duty to ~ _ save the world _ ~! Right?” She elaborated jokingly, letting a few immature snickers slip out as she waited for Strickler’s ‘no, of course not!’ response. 

 

When it did not arrive, her smirk fell into a gape of disbelief, “ _ No _ .” 

 

Strickler rubbed his face out of stress before nodding, looking at her with the facial equivalent of a shrug. 

 

She leaned back and looked away, covering her mouth as she tried to process it. Strickler looked to see if the trolls were showing any signs of interfering--they were peeking out from the top with concerned bordering on distraught expressions. He actually shrugs at them before looking back to Nomura. 

 

“I don’t believe you.” She stated, squinting at him in a way that proved this was not part of her act--she really  _ didn’t _ believe him, “Prove it.”

 

He groans, “Please don’t make me, I spent the past ten minutes just trying to get it  _ off _ \--oh good god, I already regret telling you.” He stands up, pulling at his hair as he stood up and walked around his coffee table. He drops his hands and looks straight up with a huff, “FINE. But you have to promise not to attack me,  _ or  _ run away.” 

 

“...”

 

His head tilts to give her a pleading look, “Nomura.  _ Promise.  _ This is fucking serious.” 

 

She lets her face contort for a moment, “Alright.”

 

“Not  _ alright,  _ I said  **_promise_ ** _. _ ”

 

“Ok ok, I promise! Jesus. Just fucking get on with it.”

 

Strickler shook his head with a subtle grimace and a grumble of displeasure, holding it up in front of himself to reread the engraving. He was tempted to ask her not to laugh either, but decided against it. Finally, he shut his eyes and spoke.

 

“For the glory of…  _ Merlin _ \--”

 

Nomura snickered, and his eyes snapped open, “Shut up.”

 

She zipped her lips, trying to suppress a smug smile.

 

Strickler pursed his lips in frustration, glaring at her as he spoke more quickly, “ _ For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!” _

 

Yet again he was adorned in blue light and metal, the pieces snapping together on his body with clean rings like bells. Once the blue miasma faded away, he threw his hands out to his sides with an anxious tight lipped expression, “There.  **_Happy?_ ** ” He spat, looking to see the trolls now--the two looked fairly bothered to say the least, whispering frantically to each other.

 

Nomura’s mouth was open in shock, staring in disbelief before stand up and cautiously walking over, a hand reaching out to feel the material. Strickler let himself relax, and allowed her to satisfy her curiosities until she looked him in the eyes again.

 

“Walter. You  _ know  _ we have to tell him.”

 

The man was confused for a moment before nearly gasping in horror, grabbing her by her shoulders with his words a hushed insistence, “ _ We  _ **_absolutely_ ** _ cannot! _ ” 

 

She shoves his hands off of her and clutches his wrists, hissing back, “Do you have any idea how huge this is?! You have to tell him, this is too big a deal to keep a secret!

 

“Nomura, we can’t! If he finds out, he’ll--” He pauses as his voice unintentionally rising, sucking in a breath then continuing in a far more soft, pleading tone, “He’ll  _ kill  _ me! You  **cannot** tell him, Nomura.  _ Please _ .”

 

She was interrupted before she could say any more, the trolls upstairs deciding that this was the best time to re-announce their presence by lumbering their way down into the living room, “We do not know who this ‘he’ is, but we, too, agree that he should not be told.”

 

Nomura shrieks upon seeing them--Strickler silences her with his hand, glaring at the pair, “You could have given more  _ warning! _ ” 

 

“And  _ you  _ could have had the thought to ask before showing another human your new work attire! Magic is not widespread among your kind, and we trolls have gone to great lengths just in order to keep it that way!” Blinky retorted with an offended posture and scoff, “I only surmised that if you would show her the armor, then we may as well as show her ourselves too!”

 

Argh, settling down behind him, tilted his head with his eyes squinting, “Why tell at all?”

 

Strickler stammered at the question, but Nomura pried his hand off to speak for him, “He tells me everything. We… Are very close friends, like that!” She offered the excuse with a nervous smile. Blinky paid it nearly no mind, walking towards them and around the couch to speak more seriously.

 

“You did not seem keen on keeping this a secret. As understandable as that is, it is of utmost importance that it  _ is  _ kept a secret. Letting this out could wreak havoc upon both our worlds. Painful, unnecessary havoc.”

 

“War. Many deaths.” Argh pitched in gravely.

 

“Many deaths indeed. With humanity’s affinity for killing magical creatures, we would much like to have things stay the way they have always been. Do you understand why this must be kept hidden? Can you keep this sacred secret, Miss Nomura?” He finally asked, holding the woman’s hands gently. 

 

She was severely weirded out by it, and her expression of mild disgust showed it.

 

Strickler put a hand on her shoulder, gaining her attention, “I am frightened enough by this as it is, and I am going to need your help.  _ Please _ , Nomura.”

 

She looked into his eyes for a while before turning back to Blinky with a sigh and a blunt expression, “What’s in it for me?”

 

Blinky blinked, “What’s… Is she serious?” He asked Strickler incredulously. 

 

Strickler smacked her over the head as his response, steadying his breathing and finally allowing the armor to dissipate again, catching the Amulet with his free hand, “No. She’s just teasing. She has a shoddy sense of humor,” He kneed the small of her back as a warning, “And if she isn’t, then let’s say the perk is that I’ll be protecting  _ her life. _ That ought to be a good enough perk, right?”

 

She growls softly at him, smacking his face away, “Okay, I’ll keep it a fucking secret.”

 

Blinky backed away finally, pleased, “Fantastic! Now that that is cleared up--ah… Wait a moment. Did you say that… A perk would be protecting her?” He asked in confusion. 

 

Strickler froze.

 

He offered an uneasy grin, “Ah, well, was that a… Bad thing to say? I-I mean, I don’t know  _ anything  _ about this little… Doo-hicky or what the job it gives me is about, I just assumed--”

 

Blinky chuckled at his stuttering, “No no, I am pleased, Master Walter! You’re assumption was entirely correct! You are a natural!” Strickler laughed in return, the near-miss only a hint of the kinds of lies he’ll be having to tell over and over through this whole ordeal.

 

“Now, we must begin your training, Master Walter! You must come with us at once!” Blinky exclaimed now, turning towards the door before the two changelings shouted miscellaneous sounds of distress back in refusal.

 

“I can’t!” Strickler began, frantically searching for an excuse, “I-I have work tomorrow! And…  _ Various  _ personal engagements!” 

 

Blinky gave him three sets of skeptical squints, “You can take care of those during the day, can you not?”

 

“I need to  _ sleep _ .”

 

“8 minutes is hardly any time at all, you can ‘catch your Z’s’ later! Lives depend on you now Walter, you will need training in order to properly perform this job!”

 

“What exactly  _ is  _ the job, though?” Nomura pitched in, silencing them with her inquiry, “Give him a more accurate description! He can hardly perform a job he knows little to  _ nothing  _ about.” She continued, crossing her arms and giving Strickler a small smirk--a smirk the likes of which he’d seen before, and knew well to merely sit back and let her be. He resisted the urge to sigh in relief.

 

Argh and Blinky both seemed taken aback for a moment before nodding to the validity of her question, “I suppose you are correct, Miss Nomura, allow me to fully explain,” He clasped his hands in front of himself, eyes shutting as he begins. 

 

“Your noble duty, Master Walter, is to protect both human and troll-kind from ruthless, evil trolls known as Gumm-Gumms, as well as a number of other foul things; Gnomes, goblins, grousomes, and perhaps the occasional changeling,” He recited professionally, “It is an obligation that has been passed down from troll to troll for generations, and it  _ cannot  _ be refused. Once chosen, the amulet is bonded to you, and you alone.”

 

“Till death.” Argh added solemnly. 

 

Strickler already knew the gist of this of course, but before now he’d always seen trollhunters as merely specially decorated foot soldiers, drafted into this age long war just like any other troll or Gumm-Gumm. But regular trolls and even Gumm-Gumms had the option of staying behind the front lines, aiding their armies in other ways besides combat, but now, looking at the Amulet in his hand… He realized that the likelihood of him being killed because of this Amulet was a 100%  _ certainty _ , and he truly had no say in the matter. He wondered briefly if all Trollhunters felt this horrible sense of impending doom when they were chosen.

 

Nomura saw Strickler’s face begin to blanch, and took advantage of it, clasping her hands lightly as she addressed the two trolls with a hesitant, awkward smile, “That is.. A very heavy bit of pressure to put on one guy, don’t you think?” Blinky pursed his lips at her, so she dropped the smile with a sigh, “Look, he’s just a teacher. He’s stressed enough as it is. Give him a day to absorb the information, ok? We’ll talk about this more tomorrow night.”

 

The pair of stone creatures glanced at each other before reluctantly nodding. “One day.” Argh confirmed.

 

Having come to an agreement, Nomura tried to usher them out of the house, “Great, now if you would please--”

 

“First, however… Master Walter, may I have a word?” Blinky asked lightly, pulling the changeling out of his existential daze.

 

“Hm? Ah.. Sure.” He accepted quietly, prompting the Troll to jog back over, putting a hand on his shoulder and guiding the pseudo human away from their companions for privacy.

 

Once alone, Blinky held Strickler’s hand with two of his, Amulet tucked in between, “I understand that… You must be  _ afraid _ , Master Walter.”

 

“ _ That  _ is the understatement of the century.” Strickler couldn’t help but laugh slightly, and the troll chuckled as well, looking down to sigh.

 

“So it is. I am sorry that you are being pulled into all of this, Master Walter.”

 

Strickler pulled his hand and the Amulet away, squinting in uncomfortable thought, “Is it… in any way possible that this thing chose..  _ Wrong _ ?” 

 

“Doubtful, Master Walter,” Blinky tried to assure him, “The Amulet does not choose ‘wrong’. If the Amulet chooses someone, it chooses them for a reason. That is a promise.” 

 

Strickler was unconvinced, and it showed. Blinky could see something beyond the man’s eyes--this predicament was affecting him more than he was willing to show, though the troll could not decipher the reason. So he took a deep breath, putting a hand on the human’s shoulder and speaking softly. 

 

"Master Walter, Destiny… is a  _ gift _ ,” He began, smiling when he looked him in the eye, “Some go their entire lives searching for the truth, their... Purpose in life--everyone wants to be great. Everyone wants to leave their mark on this world, before it is taken from them,” he gestures gently towards the trinket, “This, Master Walter, is  _ your  _ destiny now.  _ This  _ will allow you to make your mark; you will be remembered, and cherished for  _ centuries  _ to come.”

 

Strickler frowned slightly, and tried to pull away, as if the concept of being remembered as a positive entity was a ridiculous concept--but Blinky continued still.

 

“I can see it. In your eyes, Master Walter. There is a  _ passion  _ in you. You want to protect those you care about, and you would be a  _ fool  _ to reject this chance to do so out of  _ fear _ ! I ask you now, what is it that you are afraid of? Afraid  _ for _ ? Because  **that** fear, no matter what you name it, has been faced before, by your peers  _ and  _ your ancestors! And that fear  _ does not have to be the enemy, _ ” Blinky’s voice rose and hardened, one of his hands balling into a fist and pressing against Strickler’s chest, right above his heart, “ **_USE_ ** that fear, Master Walter!  _ You _ are the Trollhunter now, and only  _ you _ can protect our worlds from destruction, and our people-- **_Your_ ** people--from dangers that  _ they  _ cannot see!”

 

Blinky voice lowering, deep and intense and personal in a fashion that left Strickler feeling nearly exposed,, “ **_Wield_ ** that fear, as you wield the Sword of Daylight, and bear this mantel as proudly as you bear your own name, and you will soon discover the virtues of being the hero you were  _ born  _ to be. Do not  _ think _ , Master Walter…” He pulled away, standing tall and letting his hand fall from Strickler’s chest, placing it on his own with a brave, encouraging smile.

 

**_“Become.”_ **

 

And with that, the Troll turned around and left. Strickler felt winded and disheveled in the most refreshing way possibly, staring at the Amulet and its dim blue glow as if the entire rest of the word was miles away. The sounds of Nomura grunting as she pushes Argh out the front door were muffled and foreign--the only thing he could hear was the rhythmic thrum of age old magic in his palm. Processing and internalizing the troll’s words was going to be encapsulating the rest of his night, he could already tell.

 

“You alright, Strickler?” Nomura spoke only inches from him, exactly where Blinky had stood what felt like ages ago, her hand on her hip, “You look high.”

 

Trust her to ruin the moment.

 

The changeling shook his head, effectively releasing himself from his trance, “I’m not… I’m fine, just… Processing.” He walked past her quickly, heading to the kitchen to prepare himself a cup of coffee.

 

“Did that blue one lay even more heavy shit on you?” She said tiredly, making Strickler laugh incredulously. 

 

“You have  _ no  _ idea. He certainly better at giving ‘rousing’ speeches than I am,” He joked, placing the Amulet on the counter, watching Nomura as she picks it up to examine it.

 

“So. If we aren’t going to tell Bular, then what’s the plan?”

 

“I’m not sure... What do you think the plan should be?”

 

“Nuh-uh, this is  _ your  _ disaster buddy, you’re making the choice for yourself.”

 

“Fine, fine,” Strickler mumbled, taking a temperature test sip of his coffee, “I guess it depends.”

 

Nomura followed behind him as he carried his mug back out to the living room, putting his down on the table and grabbing a selection of books off of his shelf, “Depends on what?”

 

He hummed, glancing to the side, “Well… If I do go down to Trollmarket, will I be going alone?”

 

Nomura burst into laughter, “And let you expose yourself with your idiotic ramblings like you almost did tonight? Not a chance.”

 

“Good to know. Regardless of my decision, however,” Strickler smiled to himself, swiveling around with an armful of trollish literature disguised by human book sleeves, “I do believe a refresher course in the Amulet’s lore is in order.”


End file.
